Going Vegetarian for Lent – Days 20/21: Eating to Live and Reconciliation

Finishing up week 3 of my adventure into the meatless world, I’ve been focusing more on the psychological side of this topic than actually exploring creative recipies.

I did dome BBQ tofu with my secret dry rub and locally sourced sauce on Monday. It was really good. Tuesday was some left over veggie chili on baked potato. Nothing fancy, but was filling and tasty.

I like to push the limits of BBQ, but day in and day out, sometimes it just comes down to sustenance. Learning the concept of “Eating to live over living to eat” without meat, is a huge learning curve, and one that must be mastered over time.

As with most things in my life, once I feel I’ve plateaued mentally or physically, I need to raise the bar. Push myself to the next level to maintain purpose and growth.

I stumbled onto some great pod casts by Rich Roll, Ultraman and plant-based diet advocate. Just scratching the service of his message, it resonated with me. He made a statement in one pod cast that may help me reconciling my recent struggles over labels associated with Vegetarianism and Veganism.

The “Gray” area is where I am sitting now. The real “why” is eluding me for now. I am an experiment, work in progress in the process of understanding how and why people choose and sustain this lifestyle.

Rich Roll’s comment was “Strive to be plant-based, not plant perfect”. Describing one’s self as “Plant based” vs “Vegan or Vegetarian” makes more sense to me. It removes the pressure to have an agenda. It signals a work in progress to those around us. It lines up with my Christian journey, which too, is a work in progress. Sure no one is perfect, but when we pick a side, and subscribe to the agenda, we walk the fine line of hypocrisy if we don’t go all in. My current struggle with “all in” is how does one define the line that can’t be crossed and where does it end.

So, with that, I continue my journey towards refining my “plant-based” diet through the end of Lent.

Nothing magical to report regarding the running. The 5K/day is becoming harder as I’m refining my diet. My first commitment was no meat during Lent, so I will sacrifice the running streak if needed to maintain the diet.

Inspiration for the last few days comes from Proverbs 3:5-6
“Trust in the Lord with all of your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.”